Finger guard for swinging doors



June 22, 1954 J. J. DIXON, SR 2,681,479

FINGER GUARD FOR SWINGING DooRs Filed Sept. 16, 1952 Patented June 22,1954 UNITED STATES FATENT OFFICE FINGER GUARD FOR SWINGING DOORS John J.Dixon, Sn, Dorchester, Mass.

Application September 16, 1952, Serial No. 309,863

Claims.

1 The principal objects of this invention are to provide a device whichis reliable in operation,

which is of simple design and construction and,

which may readily be applied to thejamb of a door regardless of whetherthe door swings inwardly or outwardly, or whether it be hinged at oneedge or the other, and to provide a device which does not detract fromthe appearance of the doorway and which can be economicallymanufactured.

Further objects relate to features of construction and will be apparentfrom a consideration of the following description and accompanyingdrawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of what is now considered the preferredform of the invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross-section illustrating the manner in which thedevice is applied to a door jamb; and

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, but showing the door in closedposition.

The device herein shown for the purpose of illustration comprises anelongated strip I of material such as sheet metal, extruded plasticmaterials or the like, preferably of L-shaped crosssection to provide ashorter leg 2 and a longer leg 3, the latter being approximately thewidth of the door jamb (or thickness of the door) to which it is to beapplied, whereas, the shorter leg 2 approximates the depth of the jambor recess. The shorter leg 2 is integral with a narrow b resilient hingesection 4 which bends outwardly a slight amount and this section isintegral with a relatively resilient scroll or tubular member 5, thediameter of which is preferably approximately the thickness of the doorwith which it is to be used.

As shown more clearly in Fig. 2, the center of the tubular member 5 isoutwardly off-set relative to the leg 2 so that its inner surface ispreferably approximately tangential to the are defined by the swing ofthe door, it being understood that the inner curved surface mayintersect said are so long as it does not interfere with the closing ofthe door, or it may be slightly spaced from said are provided it doesnot present a gap of a width which would impair its function ashereinafter explained.

The edge of the longer leg 3 is also integral with a narrow resilienthinged section 1 of which bend rearwardly slightly and this section isintegral with a scroll or tubular member 8 preferably having a diametermuch smaller than that of the member 5, but nevertheless sumcient toblock the gap at the hinged edge of the door, as shown in Fig. 2.

The strip l, whether fabricated from sheet metal or formed from extrudedplastic material may be produced in lengths corresponding tothe heightof the doors with which they are to be used, e. g., 6-6", 6'-8", '7-0",etc., and prior to application to a door, the smaller scroll 8 may becut away as indicated at ID to accommodate the hinges H of the door Dand when thus prepared the device may be readily applied to the jamb ofthe door as shown in Fig. 2, without removing the door from the hingesH. Nails, screws or other fastening elements may be employed to anchorthe strip l in the jamb J of the door.

As herein shown the door D is hinged on the left hand edge (Fig. 2) andopens outwardly, but should the door be hinged on the right hand side toswing outwardly, then the strip I would simply be inverted; if the doorwere hinged on the right hand side to swing inwardly then the stripwould be reversed or rotated and if hinged on the left hand side toswing inwardly, the strip would be reversed or rotated 180 in theopposite direction. Hence, it does not matter how the door is hinged.

When, as shown in Fig. 2, the door D is open the scroll 5 normallyprevents the fingers F from being inserted far enough into the jamb J tobe caught if the door were suddenly closed. Indeed, when the door D isbeing closed, its edge first contacts the fingers and the time elementis such as to permit the fingers to be withdrawn due to the naturalreflex action which could not be depended upon without the scroll. Evenif the fingers were not immediately withdrawn upon contact with thedoor, the resiliency of the hinge section 4 and/or the scroll 5 wouldprevent the application of injurious squeezing or crushing force. Thesame is likewise true of the smaller scroll 8 which substantially blocksthe gap between the hinged edge of the door and the jamb surface.

While I have shown and described one desirable embodiment of theinvention, it is to be understood that this disclosure is for thepurpose of illustration and that various changes and modifications maybe made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention asset forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A device for preventing the fingers from being accidentally caught inthe lamb of a door comprising an elongate strip of material having awidth approximately equal to that of the jamb of the door to which it isto be applied, one longitudinal edge of said strip being integral with arelatively resilient scroll having a diameter an L-shaped cross-section,the width of the longer leg being approximately equal to that of thejamb of a door to which it is to be applied, said scroll extendingoutwardly from said door jamb and being so disposed that its, curvedsurface adjacent to said door is substantially tangential to the arcdefined by the inner edge of said door,

the edge of the shorter leg of said strip ,being integral with a scrollhaving a diameter approximating the width of the gap between the-door.

jamb and hinged edge of the door when the door is open.

3. A device for preventing the fingers from being accidentally caught inthe jamb of a door comprising an elongate strip of material having anL-shaped cross-section, the width of the longer leg being approximatelyequal to that of the jamb of a door to which it is to be applied and thewidth of the shorter leg being approximately equal to the depth of saidjamb, the edge of the shorter leg of said strip being integral with ascroll having a diameter approximating the width of the jamb surface,said scroll extending outwardly from said door jamb and being sodisposed that its curved surface adjacent to said door is substantiallytangential to the are defined by the inner edge of said door, the edgeof the longer leg'being integral with a scroll having a diameterapproximating the width of the 7 gap between the door jamb and hingededge of therdoor when the door is open.

4. A device as set forth in claim 1 fabricated fromtsheet metal.

5. Adevice .as set forth in claim 1 made from extruded plastic material.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName. 7 Date 1,444,994 White Feb. 13.1923 2,015,186 Kauzor Sept. 24,1935'

